Moser Baer sues Seventymm for Rs 50 cr

Optical storage manufacturer Moser Baer Entertainment has filed a suit against home video distributor Seventymm Services at the Bombay High Court, seeking Rs 50 crore compensation for ‘violating’ its ‘sole and exclusive video rental rights’. In its petition, Moser Baer, which has around 10,694 film titles, alleged that Seventymm Services — which provides DVDs on rent and online downloading of movies — was offering films without any authority, as it (Moser Baer) has the sole right to distribute to “third parties and their members”. Moser Baer further said that Seventymm was offering some popular Bollywood movies for which it (Moser Baer) has acquired “sole and exclusive video rental rights”. The titles are Jab We Met, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, Yuva, Shaurya, 36 China Town, Garam Masala, Hungama, Halla Bol, Apna Sapna Money Money etc.

In the petition Moser Baer further submitted that after a close inspection of Seventymm Services’ website it found that it (Seventymm) was offering more than 882 titles on rent.

The company further submitted that it had acquired the sole video rights of the films, which include video rentals, video-sell or home video rights after ‘executing agreement with the respective producers, negative holders’ of that movie.